Transmission mechanism



Nov. 25, 11924- 1,517,032

A. VAN DEF? SLUIS TRANSMISSION MECHANISM Filed March e 1924 sheets-.sheet l Nov. 25, R924@- 11,517,032

A. VAN DER SLUIS TRANSMISSION MECHANISM r @DS om 25, w24. 1,517,032

A. VAN DER SLUIS TRANSMISSION MECHANISM Filed March 6, 1924 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented New 25, 1924.

li if TRANSMISSON MEGHANISM.

Application led March 6, 192e. Serial No. @97,374.

To @ZZ whom t may concern.'

Be it known that l, Amin VAN DEPL SLUIS, a subject of the Queen of the Netherlands, residing at The Hague, Netherlands, have invented certain new and useful improvements in and Relating to Transmission Mechanism, of which the following is a specilication.

My present invention relates to a transmission mechanism of the type in which the driven shaft is adapted to be rotated by means of cranks of adiustable length, cooperating with reciprocatini1 yokes and with impellers of the ratchet type. In accordance with myL present invention the cranks are disposed at right angles to one another and each crank pin engages a slot in its yoke, the 4near being so arranged that the reversal of the direction of motion of the driven shaft is effected exclusively by adjustment of the length of the cranks. With my novel mechanism the speed and the direction of rotation of the driven shaft may be controlled with one single handle.

The novel transmission mechanism is adapted for use in marine propulsion, in connection with registering and controlling gear,

with machine shop equipmentfor driving lathes, with warpingv gear and for many other purposes, it being understood that the invention is not limited to any spezial or particular use.

.ln order that the langular speed of the driven shaft may be perfectly uniform, the driving' shaft. may carry a pinion meshing): with a gear wheel on the crank shaft, said pinion and said gear wheel having their pitch curves so formed as to compensate for the accelerations and retardations caused by the crank motion.

ln order that my invention may be clearly understood I shall now proceed to describe the same with reference to the annexed drawingl which illustrates. by way of example only, a suitable embodiment thereof, and on which:

Fig. l shows part of a vertical section through the axis of the crank shaft and parallel with the direction of motion of the yokes, i

Fig. 2 shows a top view of a crank disc with its impellergroup of the ratchet type, Fign is a vertical elevation of the gear, looking in the direction of motion of the yokes,

. Fig. 4l is a detail view ,0f the means for transmitting the reciprocatory motion of the yokes into oscillatory motion of shafts,

Fig. 5 is a somewhat diagrammatic view of a detail showing rollers V for radially supporting annular gear wheels in epicyclic or sun and planet wheel gear,

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic view of means for immobilizing the annular ,.Qear wheel of epicyclic ggear, instead of immobilizinn` the supports of the pinions at either'side thereof as shown .in Figi 2,

Fig; 7 is av top view of the gripping mechanism for immobilizinn either the annular vgear wheel, or the supports of the pinions in the epicvclic gear,

Fig. '8 illustrates a differential gear for controlling the length of the cranks, and

Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic view of the compenszdine` near wheels.

he driving" shaft is designated bv E (Fi lland keyed to same is a pinion l) meshing; with a gearwheel C1 keyed on the crank shaft Secured to the crank shaft A. is a second ,freer wheel C2 meshino' with a gear B1 keyed on a countershaft G1. Fie". 3.

The counter shaft G1 is provided. with two pairs of gear wheels B2 and B3. respectively. of equal diameters and meshing: with the gear rims l and 2. respectively. of two pairs of crank discs C3, C4. and C5. f6, respectively.

.secured on the crank shaft A. Each crank disc is provided with parallel ways 3, 4. equi-- distantly disposed relative to the centre and serving to guide a block M, the blocks ll/l of the discs of one pair together carrying a crank pin lil and L2, respectively. Diametrically opposite the counter shaft G1 is a second counter shaft G2 having' ,sears similar to the gears B1, B2 and B3. but the grears are the only ones illustrated (ses Fins. 2 and 8). The counter shaft G1 only serves to take up bending); stresses of the crank shaft A; if desired. it could be dispensed with. Said gears B2, B3 only serve to counteract the bendinlr stresses to which the shaft A is subjected.

The counter shaft G2 (Figs. 2 and 8) transmit-s its rotation to a controlling shaft H through a gear wheel (7 and an idler (71 meshing with a spur wheel 7L secured to one crown wheel of a differential gear. the piuions of which are ydesignated bv h2. The support of the minions h2 is ke'ved to the controlling shaftH. whereas the second crown wheel is secured to a worm wheel meshing with a worm m adapted to be turned by means of a hand Wheel l, The worm mcarries a nut a the crank shaft A. Each gear O is secured toa mitre wheel O1 cooperating with a mitre pinion t3 (Figs. l and 2) having secured to it a spur wheel t2 with which it is loosely mounted on a stud shaft supported in its crank disc. Said spur wheel t2 meshes with two spurs t1 each secured to a screw spindle N. supported with one end in a bearing` of an upstanding ange t* of the crank dise, Each block M is provided with two vof nut members for supporting the other ends the screw spindles of its crank disc so that rotation of the screws of the discs of one pair causes the block to move lengthwise in its ways 3, a whereby the distance of the crank pin L1 (or L2) from the Xis of the crank shaft is reduced or increased. l

The transmission gear between the countershaft G2 and the controlling shaft H is such that the gear wheels O, O1 normally 1ra tate with the same speed and in the same dip rection as theY crank discs, so that the mitre pinions t3 do not revolve about their axes and the crank pins Ll, L2 do not change their distances from the axis of shaft A. If, however, hand wheel 1 is turned, the gears O O1 are turned rela-tive to the crank `discs whereby the length of the cranks is varied.

The crank `pins are spaced 90o apart and each of them engages a slot '5 (Fig. Qlfof a yoke K1, K2 respectively. i y,likach yoke is provided .with rollers P2 running .on races T1 in such a manner as to have only freedom of rectilinear reciprocation. The yokes, which are movablein parallel relation with one another, are each provided with two parallel shafts? loosely mounted on which are gear wheels Pl meshing with stationary racks T.

Each yoke is provided with flanges or standards (lli'gsyl and 2) provided with bearings for shafts Q loosely mounted on each of which are two rollers l. Said rollers engage with cycloidal grooves V6 of shafts S7 which are rotatably mounted in the frame of the mechanism but prevented from lengtlnvise motion therein.` *It will be understood that when the yokes are reciprocating the rollers R will impart oscillatory motion to the shafts S. `The gear wheels P1 and the racks T'only serve to'insure increased stability so that 1n certain eases they'could be dispensed with. 'i Y n The rollers R have conical treads so as to insure stability. of the yokes ina direction at right angles tothe direction of motion.

The oscillation of the two shaftsV S cooperating withone yoke is transmitted into unidirectional rotation by means of gear wheels Sl mounted on said shafts (Fig. 2) and each cooperating with an epicyclic `treni'. That is to say, each wheel S1 meshes with the outer gear rim of an annular wheelU1 pio vided with an inner gear rim meshingwith pinions lig. Said pinions Ui". which are loosely mounted on shafts l having] their bearings in supports U2. mesh with n sun wheel U4 keyed to a shaft U. The supports U2 of the pinions of each epicylic lejear are periodically held against rotation :1nd released by mechanical means in such a 1nauner that7 `when the corresponding shaft turns in one direction. the supports U2 are immobilized, whereas theyv are released during` the return swing of said shaft. iy these. means the shaft U, v-:hich is common to he sun wheels llJA of both epicyclic gears, is rotated in one direction only but with a speed that periodically v ries.

The automatic means for alternately iniinobilizing' and releasing the supports U2 comprise a concentric cani face X provided on each crank disc and extendingY through 180, in such a manner that the can) faire ou the one crank disc of a pair is located diametrically opposite the cam face on the other disc. The cam face X of each crank disc courts with an antifriction roller u. (or all. Figi'. T, loosely mounted on :i vertical stud shaft su pported in a slide b (or b1) adapted to reciprocate in parallel relation with its yoke in a suitable way in a bracket e. The slides 7.1. 7.1 are provided with racks 3, b4., respectively. both racks meshing' with a pinion q secured on a shaft q1 rotatably mounted in the bracket e, it being` understood that rack L" engages the top side of its pinion und rack 7i the lower side thereof. Shaft q1 is provided at each end with a mitre wheel q2 meshingr with a mitre wheel g3 on a shaft 14 supported by bearings (f Each shaft q" is provided vith screw threads both at its end 'portions and at its middle portion and these threads cooperate with two pairs of nuts secured to which are clutches f7 adapted to he ulternately forced into gripping' engagement with and to relca se the supports U2. the said screw threads being. as will be understood. right and left hand threads. The clutches ql straddle a rod (je which thus prevents them from rotation so that oscillation of the shaft g4 as a. consequence -of the cooperation with the cam faces X of the rollers a, al causes the clutches of each pair to alternately move towards and from each other into and out of engagement with" the corresponding supports U2.v

It will thus be understood that the crank pinL1 imparts continuous rotation in one direction to its shaft U (Figs. l and 2) and to the gear wheel U5 keyed thereon, and that the crank pin L2 in a similar manner imparts unidirectional rotation to the pair of gear wheels Us on the second shaft U. The spur lltl Leif/,ose

Us meshes with the outer gear rim of the annular gear Wheel and the spurs UG mesh With outer gear rims provided on the supports of the pinions of an epicyclic gear W7, the sun-wheel of which is secured to the driven shaft Z.

uring one complete revolution of the crank shaft A the driven shaft .Z Will be rotated with a substantially uniform angular' speed owing to the fact lthat the crank pins 1 and L2 are spaced 900 apart. in order novv to ensure a perfectly uniform rotation of the driven shaft, the pitch curves of the gear Wheel C1 on the crank shaft A and of the pinion B are not true circles, but so formed as to compensate for the variations in the angular speed of the driven shaft caused by the crank motion.

lf the crank pin is moved-from the one side of the centre of the crank disc to the other side thereof, the direction of rotation of the driven shaft Z is reversed because the cam faces X then cause the clutches 77 to engage the corresponding supports U2 in the other half of one complete revolution of the crank shaft.

Vil'hen the crank pin is moved away from the centre of the crank disc the rotary speed of the diven shaft Z is proportionally in creased. This can be done during the oper* ation of the gear With the aid of the hand Wheel l, so that the rotary speed of the driven shaft can be controlled between Zero and a given maximum both in the one and in the other direction.

Vhat l claim is zl. A transmission mechanism comprising in combination a driving shaft, a driven shaft, a crank shaft adapted to be driven by the driving-shaft and having two cranks spaced 900 apart and provided with cra-nk pins, means for shifting the positions of the cranks in relation to their axes of rotation, means associated With each crank for converting the crank motion into reciproeatory motion, intermediate shafts, means for converting said reciprocatory motion into unidirectional rotation of said intermediate shafts, and planet gearing simultaneously driven by both last-named shafts and driving the driven shaft.

2. A transmission mechanism as claimed in claim l in which the means associated with each crank for converting the crank motion into reciproca-,tory motion includes a reetilinearly guided yoke having a slot disposed at right angles to the direction of rotation of the yoke and receiving the crank pin.

3. A transmission mechanism as claimed in claim l in Which the means associated with each crank for converting the crank motion into reciprocatory motion includes a rectilinearly guided yoke having a slot disposed at right angles to the direction of motion of the yoke and receiving the crank pin, said means for converting the reciprocav tory motion into uni-directional rotation of the shaft including rollers at opposite sides of each yoke, two shafts disposed in parallel relation with the direction of motion of the yoke and having cycloidal grooves engaging said rollers, a gear Wheel secured. to each of the last-mentioned shafts, a third shaft, tivo planet gears disposed on the lastmentioned shaft. and cooperatively coupled with said gear Wheels, and means controlled by the cra-nk shaft for alternately causing one or the other planet gear to drive the third shaft in one and the same direc* tion.

d. A transmission mechanism as claimed in claim l in which the means for shifting the positions of the cranks in relation to their axis of rotation includes .Oear Wheels loosely mounted on the crank shaft, a controlling shaft driven by the crank shaft and normally driving the said loose gear Wheels at the same angular speed and in the same direction as the crank shaft, differential gear coupling the crank shaft to the controlling shaft, and mechanism for converting rotation of the loose gear Wheels rela tively to the crank shaft into radial movement of the crank pins.

5. A mechanism as claimed in claim l in Which the driving shaft is provided With a pinion and the crank shaft has a gear Wheel meshing With said pinion, the pitch curves of said pinion and of said gear Wheel being formed to compensate for the variations of the angular speed of the driven shaft caused by the crank motion.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

AUKE VAN Dun SLUIS. 

